


If the Shoe Fits

by JackOfNone



Category: BlazBlue
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-02
Updated: 2014-08-02
Packaged: 2018-02-11 10:19:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2064354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JackOfNone/pseuds/JackOfNone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Makoto helps Jin with an errand, with a slight ulterior motive.</p>
            </blockquote>





	If the Shoe Fits

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Tren](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tren/gifts).



u mean you've never actually shopped for uniforms before?"

Jin looked up from his book, peering over the top of his glasses with a look of intense disdain. Makoto leaned over the desk, flicking her tail back and forth in agitation.

"I didn't know we even had different uniforms," Jin said, before pushing his glasses up on his nose and turning back to his text.

"You seriously had no idea? You never noticed that, like...Tsubaki was always wearing the long skirt and Noel was always wearing the short one?"

"Why would I notice a stupid thing like that?"

"It's not stupid! It's...it's basic perception skills!" Makoto decided to take the liberty of seating herself on top of Jin's desk. Her tail took up the majority of the desktop real estate, which had the side effect of crowding out Jin's attempts to do homework and forcing his attention onto her. Jin glowered. Makoto flicked her ears.

"What do you want, Nanaya?" Jin finally said. "Just spit it out."

A tiny bit of a smirk crossed Makoto's face. Excellent. "I'm here to help you purchase uniforms for the Student Council," she said. "Since, as you've just admitted, you didn't even know that there were such things as variant uniforms."

"I'm letting someone else do that," Jin protested. "Besides--"

"You can't keep passing off every single task that doesn't interest you! You've got responsibilities as a member of the student council, you know!"

"But--"

"No buts, Jin. This is an intervention."

Jin frowned, folding his hands over his book. "You're not actually going to move until I agree to the shopping trip, are you?"

"Not really, no. Wanna skip the arguing phase and go straight to the shopping?" Makoto tried a smile, but Jin wasn't going for it. That was all right -- that just seemed to be how Jin was. Gloomy as a gathering storm. "Come on. It's fun, I promise! Me and Noel go shopping all the time, even though half the time we don't buy anything. You're telling me you've got access to the Kisaragi family credit and you don't even use it? Come on. We're going."

"I don't even have--" Jin started to protest, but cut himself off with a sigh. He shut his book and stood up, closing his eyes. "When do we leave?"

"Right now," Makoto said, grinning a bit. Success was sweet.

* * *

The tailor who ran the official uniform shop was a mouse beastkin, and that was one of the reasons Makoto had always liked to go there. Being a beastkin, humans had a tendency to judge you by whatever animal they thought you most resembled, and flat-out nobody respected you when the first thing they thought of when they saw you was a helpless rodent -- or worse, vermin. You weren't just an animal to some people, you were a USELESS animal. It was nice, sometimes, to be around someone who must really know what that was like. 

The bell above the door rang as Makoto pushed it open, and the seamstress looked up from her work with an expression of moderate annoyance on her face that faded as soon as she caught sight of Makoto. Taking the drafter's pencil from her mouth and setting it aside, she inclined her head in greeting. 

"Hello there!" she chirped, tilting her head to peer at the figure following behind Makoto. "Who's your friend?" 

Jin stepped inside the shop as though someone were holding a gun to his head. "Jin Kisaragi," he said curtly, not bothering to bow. He pushed his spectacles up on his nose. Makoto elbowed him and he scowled. The beastkin's eyes went wide and her tail lashed in surprise, though she quickly clamped down on her astonishment in favor of a more professional mien. 

"It's an honor, sir," she said. 

"Tell Miss Nezumi why we're here," she prompted. Jin coughed. 

"As an acting member of the student council, I've been tasked to obtain council uniforms for the new members," he said. "Nanaya wants me to look at options."

"He didn't even know there WERE options," Makoto said, grabbing Jin by the arm and pulling him the rest of the way into the store. He shot her a glare at this gesture of familiarity but permitted it for the time being. Once inside, his eyes couldn't fail to be caught by the displays -- Miss Nezumi, as a tailor by trade, had quite an eye for detail and everything was artfully arranged. His eyes settled, almost spitefully, on a neatly folded display of red ties of varying style before sliding over to regard a rack of boots with what appeared to be mild interest.

"Ah," the tailor said, eyeing Jin critically. "You know, while we're here, I think we can make a few alterations to your current uniform. So it'll, you know. Fit better."

"What's the point of that?" Jin asked, and Makoto gave the tailor an apologetic smile. 

"It'll make you look more professional," she said, having apparently dealt with this sort of reluctance before. "Clothes are often the first thing people notice when they see you for the first time. You want people to have a good impression, right?" 

"Besides, it'll get cold soon. You'll need a warmer jacket than that!" Makoto said. "You can get one of those ones that goes down to your knees -- it looks really stylish with the gold and blue--" 

"I don't mind the cold," Jin started to protest, but found soon found himself tugged over to the display of shoes. 

"Come on," Makoto said. "I saw you looking at these. When was the last time you tried on a pair of shoes that really fit, hm? It's really something, let me tell you! What are you, about a size...uhhh..."

"I know my own shoe size," Jin snapped, but sat down nonetheless. His hand lingered over the toe of a pair of knee-high boots, feeling the smooth blue leather. There were a wide variety of styles represented -- some of them downright outlandish, more suitable for looking at than walking around in -- but Jin seemed to be drawn to something a little more utilitarian.

"Try it on," Makoto urged, slipping off her own shoes to test out a pair of ankle boots. "Do something nice for yourself once in your life, right?" 

Jin sat down, unlacing his well-worn school shoes and slipping his right foot into the boot. He stood up to test it, putting his full weight on it before taking a few steps. He frowned thoughtfully, shifting his foot on the carpet. 

Makoto stepped up to him, tottering a little in her boots. "These aren't working out," she said. "But I think those look nice!" 

"I don't really care about how they look," Jin said. "But--"

"But what?" Makoto prodded. Jin shifted his stance again, apparently testing something out. 

"They...they are pretty comfortable..." he admitted, with some reluctance. Makoto beamed at him. 

"Reinforced, too. Practically indestructable," she said, lashing her tail. "And the soles are some kind of experimental rubber. I heard Tsubaki talking about it -- apparently it'll let you run on practically anything without slipping." 

"Expensive," he murmured. 

"So? You're RICH." Jin looked up at Makoto for the first time since they'd entered the store. His eyes were still as cold as ever, but it was easy to tell when he wanted something. There was something else there, too -- some glimmer of feeling that ran through Jin's face visibly whenever Makoto mentioned his family -- but it was swift and hard to pin down. 

Really wanting a pair of shoes wasn't exactly a deep sort of emotion, but feelings were something that Jin Kisaragi seemed to keep buried so deeply inside that even this tiny glimpse was a bit of a rare treasure. 

In addition to the new council uniforms, Jin left the store with a freshly tailored jacket, three new ties, and that pair of reinforced boots he'd so admired. Makoto bought a new pair of stockings, but it was more to thank the proprieter than anything else -- though they were, admittedly, really nice. Seeing Jin Kisaragi -- THE Jin Kisaragi, the cold and untouchable Jin Kisaragi -- finally give a damn about something, even as mundane as a pair of boots and a nicely tailored suit? That was something of a find. Maybe she could even drag him along with Tsubaki and Noel on their next outing. 

"So," Makoto said, beaming at Jin, who fixed her with his usual indifferent stare. "Wanna keep shopping? There's a store that sells housewares pretty close to here, and they have the cutest-looking--" 

"No."

Makoto sighed. Well, maybe not. After all, no matter how you dressed him up, Jin Kisaragi was still Jin Kisaragi.


End file.
